1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image recording apparatus for recording an image corresponding to received image data on a recording medium by moving a recording head having a plurality of recording elements relative to the recording medium.
2. Description of the Related Art
An image recording apparatus has previously been known as this type of apparatus in which an ink jet recording head having a plurality of discharge openings and a plurality of recording elements, e.g., a plurality of heating elements, provided in correspondence with the discharge openings, is reciprocated for primary scanning relative to a recording medium by using a carriage, and, after the primary scanning is completed, the recording medium is conveyed for sub-scanning in the direction substantially at right angles to the primary scanning direction in accordance with the recording width. Such a recording apparatus is sometimes designed so that the user can freely select either a one-direction recording mode for recording during movement of the recording head in one of the reciprocation directions thereof, and a bidirectional recording mode for recording during movement of the recording head in both reciprocation directions thereof. Facsimile equipment using such a recording apparatus as a section for recording data transmitted through signal lines has also been proposed.
In this apparatus, when remarkable deviation occurs in dots during printing of ruled lines by bidirectional recording, a user may select the one-direction recording mode in order to improve the quality of the image recorded. However, when one-direction recording is set, the ink jet recording head must be returned to the printing start position after one block is completely printed by one primary scanning. The printing time is thus 1.2 to 1.5 times that of bidirectional recording.
Thus, even when the recording mode is set to either the one-direction recording made or the bidirectional recording mode, if the minimum transmission time declared by a receiver is the same, more time is required for recording data in image memory for storing received data therein in the one-direction recording mode. There is thus the problem that, when a great deal of data is received, the image memory easily overflows.